Keeping the passion for photography

[FearTheXNoob]

Hi all,

 

I had been photographing for a couple of years as a hobby, when I realized (two years ago) that my passion was not there anymore. Previously I always would take my camera with me, just because there was the chance of getting a nice shot. That time was gone, and I didn't bother bringing my large DSLR with me, unless there was a clear "mission" to take some images. Then I stumbled upon the Fuji X-E1, and all of the sudden I wanted to have it with me all the time again. I liked the sound of the shutter, the aperture ring on the lens, the controls. The AF was way worse than on the DSLR, the dynamic range was not as good - but I liked to hold it and take pictures with it. It basically re-ignited my passion for photography. Since then I've switched to Fuji all the way and now have an X-T1 with various lenses. 

 

I assume the time will come when using the Fuji cameras and lenses will be normal to me, and nothing special anymore. Old DSLRs already feel like dinosaurs to me, when I take them in my hands... Since I cannot (and don't want to) switch brands when my passion for photography is slowly diminishing next time, I'm looking for ways to keep it alive.

 

Do you guys experience this as well? Or do never get bored with photography at all? If this happens to you: What do you do to counter it? Do you try new kinds of photography, new gear, or what else? Do you just accept it and take a break from photography and come back later?

 

Looking forwards to hear from you!

 

[darknj]

I haven't got to that point yet. But I did realised that I wanted something smaller for my hobby time. That's when the Nikon 1 AW1 came into my world. Small nervous camera, great AF and ratio weight/Size was quite good, plus it is still the only ILC that can take a fall from 2m, go under water up to 15m and still take picture at -15°C.

 

While I love the Nikon 1 series, I kinda disliked the super poor higer than 1600 ISO file, IQ while perfectly decent for a 1" sensor still left me with much to be desired plus I wanted more controls over the shots.

 

But yes, ever since I got my X-T1, it hardly ever leave my side, I can pack a small bag and carry a lens with it and just go out and shoot. That camera brought me back the pleasure of walking back home from the local train station, it's always the same path but I always try to find something new to take a picture off. At times I have wandered into streets I have never been before and see things in different angle than usually.

 

So while I didn't lose interest in photography as a hobby like it happened to you, I just got myself a camera that I am perfectly willing to take with me every day to continue shooting for fun.

[olli]

I think it's quite a normal experience for a lot of people that their enthusiasm waxes and wanes. Right now mine is on the way down and I'm in one of those troughs.How you deal with it depends on the person you are, there's no one size fits all solution. Some people suggest forcing yourself to shoot, even if you are not enjoying it and your results don't please you, on the basis that as long as you keep shooting your passion and enthusiasm will come back. Others lean towards a more, literally, hands-off approach, leaving the camera behind and not trying to force it, assuming that you will eventually start picking it up again when you're ready. Personally, I tend towards this latter approach but, like I say, there is no one solution that suits everyone.

 

One general point, though, that I think does apply to everyone, is not to worry about it. Worrying about it, analyzing why we've lost our enthusiasm generally only leads to more problems. Whatever your way of dealing with it it shouldn't involved worry.

[abjurina]

There are many exercises and articles for keeping your passion for photography alive, from buying new gear, photographing different genres, looking at other art forms. I agree with the not-worrying approach. There is enough to worry about in life, and photography, while very enjoyable, can never fill personal voids that were designed to be filled by others.

[pizzaman]

The cameras are ultimately not the point in photography.

 

You have to know what you want to talk about with your work. You have to have your 'thing' - find and photograph what you care about.

Everyone I've ever known that liked gear and/or just liked to make pretty pictures gets bored before too long.

 

If you have that fire - you have a mission with your work - you may get burnt out sometimes but you'll always have that fire to come back to. The great thing about photography is that it intersects with life in so many ways, but you have to have a life and passions outside of it to keep your work interesting.

 

For instance - are you social justice oriented? Let your pictures speak to that. Interested in astronomy? Let your pictures speak to that? Die hard rock climber or hiker? Let your pictures speak to that. Love the absurdity of watching people mindlessly ramble down the street? (Lots of photographers love this one!) Etc Etc. You need to look outside of photography for reasons to stay inspired.

If you were a writer, what would you write about? You can never get excited about new gear for writing really, but still, some persist because they have something to say. Pictures are a communication device like words - they just operate differently.

 

The camera is just the pen. In the end it doesn't matter too much what it is, as long as it gets out of the way and lets you do your job and talk about what's on your mind.

[fujifilmcollective]

Put yourself infront of good photos. Travel. Get amongst it. Not worry to much about gear.